same with yeast. See Yeast.—Barm is said to have been first used by the Celts in the composition of bread. About the time of Agricola's entrance into Lancashire, a new sort of loaf had been introduced at Rome, which was formed only of water and flour, and much esteemed for its lightness; and it was called the water cake from its simple composition, and the Parthian roll from its original inventors. But even this was not comparable to the French or Spanish bread for its lightness. The use of curmi, and the knowledge of brewing, had acquainted the Celts with an ingredient for their bread, which was much better calculated to render it light and pleasant, than the leaven, the eggs, the milk, or the wine and honey, of other nations. This was the spume which arose on the surface of their curmi in fermentation, and which the Welch denominate barm, and we barm. The Celts of Gaul, of Spain, and most probably therefore of South Britain, had long used it; and their bread was, in consequence of this, superior in lightness to that of any other nation in the world. See the articles Baking and Bread.

Barmas, an East Indian people, who in 1512 possessed possessed all the coast extending from Bengal to Pegu. It appears also, that they were formerly masters of Ava, the dominions of which extended as far as China; and of consequence the Barnas were masters of most of the northern parts of the peninsula beyond the Ganges. Their dominions, however, were afterwards reduced to very narrow bounds, and their king became tributary to the king of Pegu; but by degrees they not only recovered their former empire, but conquered the kingdoms of Pegu, Siam, and several others. By the latest accounts, their kingdom extends from the province of Yun-nan in China, about 800 miles in length from north to south, and 250 in breadth from east to west. See Asia and Pegu.